TOP-RATED Online Real Estate Schools in Florida for 2023
If you are thinking about pursuing a career in real estate, the first step is to find a school that is accredited by the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) to get licensed. Your biggest challenge here will be to choose one out of the 100 education providers that currently offer the mandatory Florida real estate courses.
If you are like us, you just want a simple answer and go with the best. The problem is that everybody learns differently, so what works for you may not work for someone else. The good news is that since there are so many different options available, you will easily be able to find a school that fits your own learning style.
We have broken the list down and hand-picked the 4 best real estate schools that will cater to any learning style to get your sales associate real estate license in Florida.
Most real estate schools that have been established for a long time tend to have similar looking programs. Aceable is a young school that has taken a fresh approach to reflect today’s ever-changing environment. Their programs are developed by Harvard-educated course designers and approved by top-producing real estate agents. This gives you the ultimate combination of academic excellence with proven learning techniques that work in the real world.
Aceable separates itself from other schools by trying to make learning fun. If you imagine one of your friends trying to teach you about the real estate industry, that is the style how Aceable has written their courses. In other words, the course textbook reads like you are having a conversation with someone. This style of writing makes learning less intimidating and easier to understand.
Another big differentiator is they are one of the few schools that offer an audio version of the entire course. This means you can listen to it while you are sitting in rush hour traffic or taking your dog out for a walk. If you get one of the premium packages, you can also watch video lessons that cover the most important concepts.
The biggest thing lacking with Aceable is that since they are100% online only, they don’t have any hardcopy books or physical study materials you can hold in your hand.
Best School for Busy People
If you have a lot on your plate and need an engaging school that will keep your attention, Aceable is hands-down going to be the best option for you. They give you a variety of tools to help you learn, such as their audio option and recorded video lessons. There is also a mobile app that you can download on your phone that makes it convenient to study on the go.
(formerly known as Real Estate Express)
Colibri Real Estate, has become a staple of real estate education. They are the biggest real estate school and offer primarily online courses. Since they do not have any brick-and-mortar locations that offer classes, they are able to offer a really good online program at a great price.
Colibri Real Estate offers 4 packages to help you obtain a real estate license. All of the packages contain the required 63-hour pre-license online course. The more expensive packages give you additional study materials and support. The top package, Ultimate Learning, includes the hardcopy books and a year of Professional Development tools to help you after you get licensed.
The course itself is in an online book format. You read everything online and then answer multiple-choice test questions at the end of each section. This format is great if you want to move at your own pace or just love to read. You get up to 6 months to finish the program whenever you want.
They also came out with a lot more interactive study tools when it comes time to prepare for the actual exam. There is a pre-recorded Exam Cram Video that covers important topics related to the national portion of the exam. Additionally, you can attend 1-hour live webinar sessions through the Live Exam Crammer Series. This gives you the most engagement as you get to see a live instructor from the comfort of your home.
Best School with the Lowest Prices
If you are a self-starter and looking for a great deal, Colibri Real Estate is perfect for you. Although the online course is pretty standard for the industry, they give you a plethora of study tools to choose from that is unmatched by any other school. They have recorded videos, hardcopy books, live instructors, and even a boot camp course to help you after you get licensed.
3. The CE Shop
The CE Shop makes unique courses in the way they deliver the material. The courses are primarily text-based. However, they make it interactive by using scenario-based learning. This has been proven to help retain information better, especially with adult learners. They develop their content by using actual events that real estate agents have experienced.
The CE Shop teaches you not only about the required information on real estate law, but they try to take it to the next level by helping you apply that in the real world. They do not just want to prepare you to pass the state exam, they want to help you succeed in your real estate career after that.
The courses look refreshingly modern and have a clean interface. The CE Shop has a liberal 30-day refund policy and industry-leading phone, email, and chat support 7 days a week. The courses are mobile-friendly, which makes it much easier to read if you want to study with your smartphone or tablet.
The CE Shop claims they have an 83% pass rate on the state exam. This number is based on their own self-reported surveys from 101 reported test-takers between May 2016 to December 2018. This is significantly higher than the average pass rate of 49%. However, I think it is too early to tell if their program warrants such a high pass rate. The sample size is simply too small. In 2018 alone, there were over 15,000 people who took the Florida sales associate exam for the first time.
Best school for Knowledge Seeker
If you want to not only fulfill the education requirements to get your license but also want to learn as much as possible, The CE Shop is the right program for you. You cannot pass the course by merely guessing or tricking the system. You will have to genuinely know the material inside and out to move forward. As a result, it will prepare you the best, but you may end up taking more time to complete it.
Gold Coast Schools is the leading education provider for getting your real estate license in Florida. They started with a single office in 1970 and now have 7 locations all over the state. They also provide programs in the mortgage, insurance and construction industries. Gold Coast Schools are very well-known in Florida and have a great reputation for their online courses and live classes, which are both offered in Spanish and English.
You can complete the live courses in a classroom in as little as 7 days, where you attend a class every day from 9 am to 6 pm. If that doe not fit your schedule, then they have morning and evening classes available with their 4-week and 5-week long programs. They have 9 different locations available for classroom instruction:
12276 San Jose Blvd, Ste 208
Jacksonville, FL 32223
11250 N.W. 20th Street
Miami, FL 33172
2600 N. Military Trail Suite 150
Boca Raton, FL 33431
5104 N. Orange Blossom Trail Suite 114
Orlando, FL 32810
1170 Celebration Blvd Suite 200
Celebration, FL 34747
3577 N.E. 163rd Street
North Miami, FL 33160
5600 Hiatus Road
Tamarac, FL 33321
6216 S. Congress Avenue
Lantana, FL 33462
3505 Lake Lynda Dr Building 300
Orlando, FL 32817
If you can’t make it to a classroom, they also offer a livestream video option you can attend from home. You get the same interactive learning experience as you would in a classroom without the commute. You will need a stable internet connection and will need to make sure you can attend the class virtually on the given dates and times.
Best School for Live Classes
Gold Coast Schools excels with their live classes, which are led by engaging and experienced instructors. Although the classrooms require you to be there in person and may cause scheduling conflicts for some people, they offer a livestream option, which you can take from anywhere. If reading books or taking online courses is not engaging enough for you, Gold Coast Schools live classes will surely keep you motivated.
Does a person need to be a Fla resident to take the Fla real estate course and
Is the Fla board exam online, too?
You don’t have to be a Florida resident to get licensed. You can’t take the exam online but they have lots of convenient testing centers available.